Bedard says Blackhawks need to make playoff push next season

CHICAGO -- Connor Bedard wants to be here. More importantly, he wants to win here, and the center said the Chicago Blackhawks need to push for the Stanley Cup Playoffs next season.

“This kind of has to be the last year of, obviously the games aren’t meaningless, but not playing until the end of the year. Playing for something in the playoff standings,” Bedard said Thursday, one day after the Blackhawks’ season ended without a Stanley Cup Playoff berth for the sixth straight year.

“That’s on us as individuals. I take a lot of responsibility for that and feel like we can all just pull with the same rope. You saw that for kind of the first half of the year. We were in that (playoff) spot and then things kind of, we slid a little bit. As my production went down, I feel responsible for that, which adds motivation. I think all our guys are ready to make that push.”

There doesn’t seem to be any doubt Bedard will re-sign with the Blackhawks this offseason. The 20-year-old, selected No. 1 in the 2023 NHL Draft, has completed the final season of the three-year, $2.85 million entry-level contract ($950,000 average annual value) he signed on his 18th birthday (July 17, 2023) and can become a restricted free agent on July 1.

“It’s certainly a big piece on our checklist that we need to cross off and so we’ll get to that in short order, hopefully,” Chicago general manager Kyle Davidson said. “He’s so important to our team, he took such a big step forward this year in every facet, and so that’s certainly an important one to cross off the list.”

Bedard said he held off on contract talks until the offseason because he wanted to concentrate on the season and on his game. The focus paid off. Bedard had career highs in points (75), goals (30) and assists) in 69 games. He averaged 20:52 of ice time per game, the most among Blackhawks forwards and second on the team to defenseman Alex Vlasic (21:08). 

While Bedard said he hasn’t even thought of whether he wants to sign a long- or short-term deal, what he wants to accomplish on the ice looms larger.

“I want to win here for as long as I’m playing,” he said. “At the end of the day, I have so much faith in the management, the coaching and also our players. We get to see each other every day, how we approach the game, how guys practice, how much skill there is. I would go to bat for any single guy in that room and argue they’re going to reach their full potential because of the mindset and work ethic we have in our group.”

Davidson said he got the same message from several players, not just Bedard, in exit interviews on Thursday.

“The players are very motivated to make sure that we’re pushing for the playoffs next year,” Davidson said. “I think that’s realistically something, a goal we believe they should come into training camp trying to achieve.

“Now, it’s something that would require a major step forward, but the group is motivated and talented enough that we feel it’s not unrealistic to expect that. So, we need to take another step forward. We took a nice one this year, but the League doesn’t wait around for anyone, and so young players have to continue that development and translate that to more wins on the ice.”

The Blackhawks (29-39-14), who finished last in the Central Division, took steps this season. Their young players got more experience. Their penalty kill finished the season ranked second in the NHL (38.6 percent) behind the Colorado Avalanche, who had the League’s best record; it was tied for 14th last season. Chicago was in a lot of close games, 35 of which were decided by one goal, and finished with four more wins and 11 more points than in 2024-25.

“When I think about the on-ice (performance) in particular, it’s the competitiveness, more games where we were more competitive more nights,” Blackhawks chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz said on Thursday. “We need to figure out how to close those games for sure, but it’s showing, overall, a better competitiveness.”

The Blackhawks are ready to take the next step. Davidson is willing to add through free agency if it makes sense and helps them reach the next goal. It’s been a rough few seasons, but for this group led by Bedard, it’s time for a trip to the playoffs.

“I can’t be more confident that we are going to get to where we want to get to. It’s going to be a fun journey,” Bedard said. “I think that’s what people say they look back on is kind of growing up together and kind of getting better and better. We’re motivated to do that.”